#but i do have 10 hrs to spare every few months to watch the movies again

[incorrect-lord-of-the-rings]

Hot Take: Someone loving Lord of the Rings and only knowing the movies does not make them invalid as a fan. Those books are hard to read through and the movies were brilliant.

#i read the books and the appendices when i was 10 and i do not have the time nor the mental stability to read them again #but i do have 10 hrs to spare every few months to watch the movies again #i love both very much #lotr #lord of the rings #lord of the rings trilogy

[2dmenarewonderland]

Damages. (part 3)

Close RP Part 1  / 2 / 3

William’s POV

Ah finally! The fresh office meat has arrived to sign her contract after what feels like a week in the working world but has only been 24 hours. Keen to get Scottie King on the payroll and working asap as of this coming Monday morning; my eyes, as well as the two sets from the people who sit and stand around my desk flash up at the pretty brunette who I’m convinced will be a good fit here. Gaze tracing her over once more as it did identically at the end of our interview time together, I shoot a disappointed look at April who’s acting as a current receptionist on top of everything else I expect from her and due to the comment from Ms King, make it clear that being slack won’t be tolerated.

“Reed, what do I pay you for again?”

Sensing that there’s a definite tension fuelled from frustration between my previous mentee and I, Noah steps in; cordially ending the time together we had pre-organised to go over stocks, shares and investments for the company as well as dividends and offers to take Ms King through to HR which should still be on the clock.

“I’ll see you on Monday at 8 sharp Ms King; and be careful of Noah”, I called out as a playful warning, “He’s cute but he bites.”

Noah’s POV

Eyes rolling at what’s just been said, if Will won’t be a people person when it comes to inter-work-related matters, the least I can do is clear up the loose ends. Holding the office door open for Ms King whose resume I had the pleasure of reading over earlier in the morning only to find out later on that she had been hired without confirmation or discretion; it’s a ‘just this way’ mentioned as I lead her through to HR.

“Not that I should have to say this, but from time to time – you’ll have to ignore the idiocy which leaks from Will’s mouth. If he were real – even God couldn’t grant that moron a filter to save him.”

Finding the worker who’s got Ms King’s contract, I skim over it, ensuring that all three partners have signed where required before mentioning that a salary negotiation is had after a 3 month probationary period in which she should eagerly conciliate as she begins to sign her life away. For a woman in her position, it shouldn’t be hard, if she performs well to change a few figures in her wage.

“I’d offer you the standard office tour and remind you that everything that happens in between the walls of Black Brokers is strictly confidential but it’s a Friday now almost after 7 and I get the impression a woman like you has a better place to be or even other plans already in the works. Let me though, point out that the desk over there by the window is yours – feel free to bring some character to it.”

It’s rather casual as I ask if Scottie has any questions and that she can come to either Will or myself for issues seeing now as our third partner is on vacation and further at the end of next week – leaving. Gesturing toward the lifts; it’s a swipe of my employee card which opens up one on priority and, extending an arm I hold the doors open as Scottie takes a step in.

“If you drive, let the concierge know that you’re employee 6626 and they’ll valet your car for you. Otherwise, enjoy your weekend Ms King. I look forward to starting work with you on Monday.”

Playful smirk and watching as the lift doors lock shut, it’s a harsh sounding slap that echoes throughout the office and I wonder, what the heck happened for that kind of reaction.

April’s POV

Hand stinging, the fact that Meyer’s smirk is still on his face just goes to prove that the slap wasn’t hard enough. Frowning, it’s a lean forward over his desk to convey annoyance as I ramble off the list of frustrations and expectations which have led to this outburst.

“You want a secretary, administrationist, receptionist, slave, maid, office-keeper… hire one or give me a god damn raise. I’m over 17 hour days which end without a mere acknowledgement for all the work I do and have neither the time nor patience to listen to your cocky attitude and snide remarks.”

“How long have you wanted to slap me?” The question throws me off for a second, yet I’m straight back on it to answer, “How long have we known each other for now?”

“Eleven years…”

“Yeah, that sounds about right.”

Up and leaving the paperwork I was going to process and file on Will’s desk figuring now with the mood that I’m in that it can wait until Monday morning (although I know and am lying to myself that I won’t be on over the weekend because lets face it – this is my world currently), I leave without a goodbye or ‘have a nice weekend’ which was my usual phrase for a Friday and grab my handbag from the reception desk before swiping myself out.

I need a drink. A hard drink; and maybe something or someone to help me let off steam.

Scottie’s POV

The tone of William’s voice definitely sets tension in the air but the other eye candy steps in and spares me from the office drama that I should not be involved till next week. Getting a just as bad as Meyers vibe from Noah, I mostly nod and smile at his words for time like this is better to say less but observe more. I believe April would be more than happy to bitch about the horrible and moronic bosses that she works for on Monday.

Box of beer, chips in hands and movie marathon would totally do the trick in cheering up my stubborn housemate, perhaps a week of breakfast too. Back home and see Kyle on the couch, flipping channels without acknowledging me, I show my bribe and flop next to him. “If you don’t want to hear me out, that’s fine but at least give me some time, you’ll see, it’s not that bad.”

“They are corporate, the higher up in power, the top of food chain who feeds on the weak.”

“Dude…”

“You hate them or you used to!”

“Kyle, you should know by now not everything is black and white.”

“I know enough that they always play the grey area! Not only you waste a law degree and the capability to help the ones in need, you sit behind your little desk and play secretary. Now, you work for the bad guys.”

“Charlie works in law firm!!”

“And when was the last time I speak to my brother!”

“Kyle… just… look… Here, drink and we will talk this over.”

“No, I will take my drinks elsewhere!”

Great, his is going to start silence treatment till I yield.

Kyle’s POV

The bar is hot and close, a rather huge contrast to the cold winter and distant friend whom I couldn’t quite recognize base on the conversation we’ve had 10 minutes ago. Every booth is taken by groups, loners are all seated by the bar table which is also obviously where I belong. A haze of human generated heat hangs in the air, reeking of perfume, aftershave and of course alcohol. The place vibrates with energy, laughter and live music pulsing through the low hum of many voices.

A wave, order and arrival of my first shot, it’s the sound of my glass simultaneously hitting the table with another glass that causes my eyes to look up and meet with a brunette who is just as frustrated as me. “Long day too huh?”

Tap to get another shot, my brows raised to suggest another round and we end up losing count of shots, glasses and bottles in front of our faces. Chattering noises grow in the back yet without much exchange, we simply keep drinking as if to purge of all thoughts. My eyes begin to trace up and down my drinking buddy of the night, fit, well put together in executive outfit yet clearly unhappy like any other regular folks in town which I once swear not to become and here I’m drinking my sorrow friendship irritation away on a Friday night.

Being out of character, I lean in and whisper into her ear, lips grazing her soft hair. “Do you want to get out of here?”

#kyle hayes #scottie king #oc rp #rp #closed rp #role play #damaged #2dmenarewonderland #tumblr writer #creative writing #first pov #original character #original character role play

[smackit17-blog]

Of course in Los Angeles everything is based on driving. Even the killings.

In my last post, I talked about my adventures in couch surfing. More specifically, staying with my dear friend, her two kids and my newest frenemy, her 10 month old white lab, Kota. In addition to imposing upon her home, I arrived carless which in LA renders you completely dependent and helpless. 

Before you judge me to harshly and chalk me up to a mooch through and through, I had no idea how this test drive in LA (pun fully intended) was going to play out and figured I’d need to see what happened before committing to anything, even car rental. Also, I had asked my friend before arriving about immediately renting a car and her strong recommendation was to wait and see.

So as I bounced around between a couple of AirBnBs and a couple days at a friend’s (who subsequently broke up with me after my stay - more on that in another post) I made my way around via Uber. Mostly local west side trips, and I was feeling good about the decision as Uber is the one thing that is significantly cheaper here in LA vs NYC. Where this decision turned was last Wednesday when my friend picked me up to begin my extended stay in Bel Air. And then I started my new job on Thursday (the next day) which was located back in Santa Monica.

My friend lives in a beautiful gated community in lovely Bel Air. So lovely, I now reside mere houses from Kim K and Kayne, Freddy Prince Jr and Sarah Michelle Gellar and most interestingly the beleaguered Kathy Griffin. But with the gate comes some serious security, i.e. you cannot get through the gates unless you are on the list. So me being without a car meant in addition to all the other pain in the ass aspects of my presence my friend now had to alert the front gate every time an Uber came for me. 

Which brings me to lesson 1 in this post - A caged bird doesn’t actually sing. Unlike NYC there is almost no set up in LA where you can walk for simple errands like running for toothpaste at Walgreens or picking up a salad for dinner. You have to drive. And Uber’ing for every little thing not only starts to add up financially, it starts to take a toll emotionally -the feeling of dependence and gluttony to be lining the evil Uber company’s pockets and dropping $5-10 at minimum every couple hours. To add to the festivities, the AT&T cell service is spotty to non existent in wide swaths of LA geographies, so there are times when trying to get an Uber is not possible, unless you happen to be near a store with wifi that will allow you to use it. 

And then there’s the fact that I don’t know many people in LA, and the ones I know are sprinkled throughout the city, and like most Angelenos don’t like to travel outside of their neighborhood, or have been too busy to see me. I’m not trying to lay a guilt trip on anyone here. I realize that just because I am here, doesn’t mean anyone’s life stops to accommodate me and be my security blanket. Part of the next 3 months is to see if I can sort myself out here in a way where I can have a happy life and that means, making some friends and finding my way around and all that that entails. And let’s be honest, I’ve been in NYC for more than 20 years so you just cant compare being thrown into a brand new giant city. But its isolating and lonely as fuck. And for me, that’s never good.

So when I am feeling blue, a healthy self-medicator is exercise and outdoor activities. One of the big draws of SoCal as it so happens. However to go on these hikes and bike rides, you have to drive to the start point. I know ironic. Uber’ing to hike by yourself and risking poor cell reception and potentially being stranded - not appealing. So as my first weekend in Bel Air arrived, I started planting the seeds with my friend about hiking. The same friend who is run ragged as a single mom with two kids and battling an extended flu. Yeah, I know. But, I mean I’m desperate, and apparently also totally an ass. She gamely said she’d be down but as the weekend progressed it became clear it wasn’t happening. I felt pathetic that I had no friends to do anything with, and pathetic for being so helpless and stuck. And I felt annoying and embarrased. And then I started to feel like a prisoner. A prisoner in Bel Air. Pretty nice prison, but a bit of a caged animal feeling nonetheless.

Sunday morning arrived and I asked about food delivery in this city. I was told, sure yes and so I ordered for my friend, her sister (also staying there - more on that in another post) and myself. Only to have the delivery service promptly cancel. Just a sorry we’re too busy email. WTF! You’re too busy?! At this point I knew a meltdown was imminent. I also knew a meltdown wasn’t an option, given my circumstances. 

My friend’s sister seemed to sense the level of my distress and offered to take me to Whole Foods. I’m sure the level of gratitude I displayed was unnerving, but I truly felt it. I immediately went to get a Green & Glowing smoothie for myself and my friend. Surely that would put me back in the game. I got a few other staples for the day in case I would be housebound when I returned. So I put the smoothies in a carrier and walked out to the parking lot with my bag of food in one hand and the smoothie carrier in the other. And wouldn’t you know it, I dropped the smoothies. As I watched the contents ooze across 3 parking spots, I contemplated dropping to the ground and licking them up. I mean how much lower could I go?

Which brings me to lesson 2 - Don’t underestimate small acts of kindness. I went back to the counter and by the grace of god the same smoothie maker was at the register. I explained my woeful tale  and not only did she make me two new smoothies free of charge. she upsized them and walked me out to the parking lot to make sure I would make it. I mean...by the grace of god my friends I had a sign. LA didn’t hate me, I just needed to get a fucking car.

Now before concluding, there is a story within this story to share. The last time I was in a new city requiring a car was when I spent one year to the day in Richmond Virginia. At that time I couldn’t have been more stoked to have a car! A car was freedom from the shackles of the vile NYC subway system and smelly hot cabs. A car was road trips every weekend. And I got myself the dream car of every 60 year old man. A big white Mercedes that I dubbed the “white princess” and my co-worker dubbed “million $ listing” proclaiming I looked like a real estate agent in my big white sedan. Whatever, the car was awesome. So awesome it practically drove itself. Let me give you an example. If I wasn’t staying within my lanes it would urge me to pull over and get a cup of coffee, and beep insistently when I was too close to another car.

And I needed all the help the car had to offer. I had chosen the extra special tires to go with the car, i.e. most expensive $ could buy. And parallel parking by braille cost me about 6 popped tires in the span of the year. Another time the car couldn’t save me from myself was when i was driving on 95 South and went flowing over a ginormous pot hole at 85MPH not only popping the tire but damaging the wheel. Miraculously this occurred next to a construction site and I was able to get two of the site workers to put on my spare and drive the remainder of 95 at 25MPH. enough to get home. 

Which brings me to lesson 3 - Learn from your past. Don’t be imprisoned by your past. And I have a history of being distracted behind the wheel. One such event occurred a few months into my move. I was at a stoplight texting. YES you can do that at a red light in VA! I’m not the devil. Anyway I noticed out of the periphery of my eye that the light turned green. So as I looked up I simultaneously hit the gas petal. This white princess had serious pick up and between the time I had looked down and the light turned green, a motorcyclist had pulled in front of me. My led foot caused my car to bang right into him. Thankfully he jumped off and away from his bike at my first bang, because instead of hitting the break at that point, I panicked and hit the gas. The White Princess crushed his motorcycle like a bug. And then she was in the shop about 8 weeks of my single year in VA.

So this combined with a spotty track record from the get go of driving, nervousness of freeway driving, and poor night vision, was all playing into my insecurities around driving myself around LA. But the pros - the freedom, the chance to not feel like a prisoner and the biggest burden in the world, was putting me over the edge...

Which brings me to the final lesson of this post - Movies can have morals. The capper came at the conclusion of the weekend when my friend and I went to see Wonder Woman. The movie could carry 2-3 posts in an of itself, but the net net as it pertains to driving is that this woman was a fearless warrior and inspiration. And if she could save the world from Ares and leave her flawless island and mother to do it and never look back, then god dammit I would drive myself around LA. So Monday morning I marched into HR and proclaimed that I would accept their generous offer to use the agency car for a few weeks and swiftly ended my carless status.

And just to bing this back to what matters most is the simple fact that I have NO EXCUSES to not go to every ass finding class LA has to offer because I can now drive myself there anytime day or night :)